Ruzewski overseeing Andretti Global’s big flex

Ron Ruzewski’s last win for an organization other than Team Penske took place in the 1990s with Walker Racing and Robby Gordon.

The years that followed at Penske as a race engineer and later as managing director were filled with an abundance of the greatest triumphs offered in IndyCar, and with his recent arrival at Andretti Global, Ruzewski was given the first opportunity in a celebrated career to lead a team from the outset.

That chance started Jan. 1, just 73 days prior to Kyle Kirkwood’s mastery of the Java House Grand Prix of Arlington to secure Andretti’s first victory of the season, which also served as the first for Ruzewski in his brief tenure as the team’s new leader.

The ability to succeed at such a rapid rate was made possible by years of work by Rob Edwards, Ruzewski’s predecessor and a fellow Walker Racing alumni who led Andretti Global through 2025 and was promoted to a senior performance role at the team’s parent company, TWG Motorsports. Edwards and Ruzewski worked together at Derrick Walker’s team, which made the recent transition and hand-off a smooth affair.

Sunday’s commanding run to first, third, and fourth in the race complemented Marcus Ericsson’s pole position, and also featured Will Power’s first podium for the team after leaving Penske during the offseason. The retooled program has been the best IndyCar team of the young season, which isn’t something the organization has been able to say for quite some time.

For Ruzewski, Arlington demonstrated both the strides the team has made as well as some places where improvements are still needed. Joe Skibinski/Penske Entertainment

“Definitely happy with today, and really with the progress we're making,” Ruzewski told RACER. “But the results are one thing. We're not going to rest on our laurels, because there's still a lot of work to be done. The best thing about it is there's 100-percent buy-in from everybody, from the top down. We're going to make changes, and we're going to continue to move forward. I think having a good start to the season is just showing some of the fruits of that labor. And there's a lot more to be had.”

It wasn’t so long ago when the Andretti team was better known for its in-fighting and general dysfunction than the cohesive excellence it’s been demonstrating since the purchase by TWG. Across all three cars, the happiness and genuine support for each other is evident.

“Obviously I had a late start to this, but on my first day, I stood up in front of everybody and said, ‘This is going to be one team,’” Ruzewski added. “There's always going to be one car that's going to win the race and two cars that are going to be unhappy, but at the end of the day, we're all going to be winners, right? And the best position we can be in is to be 1-2-3, because that's what's going to make us succeed.

“We're going to lose more than we're going to win, but we’ve got to put ourselves in a position to win every week. And everybody's buying into it. I think they're genuinely excited. There's a good vibe amongst the crew. There's a good vibe amongst the drivers. It's nice for me, because I'm able to help set a direction, and they're able to see results, from the way we're presenting ourselves at the track to the way our we look under the tent, to the way our hospitality looks, to how we're treating our sponsors, and then ultimately to our performance on track. And they're seeing it. They’re seeing it all matters.”

Team Penske has been peerless when it comes to pit stop performance, and that’s another area where Ruzewski has been able to bring improvements to Andretti. Granted, Sunday’s race was a rolling disaster as Kirkwood, Power, and Ericsson faced delays during at least one visit to the pits, if not more, but the two opening races at St. Petersburg and Phoenix were mightily impressive in the year-to-year growth shown by the crews.

“One of the things they told me was a deficit was pit stops and consistency, and we've been working hard at it,” Ruzewski said. “We made some changes. Some changes might have been unfavorable, but if we don't make changes, we'll never get better.”

Like so many aspects of the team in 2026, there’s plenty to celebrate and plenty left to improve.

“With those tough days, we have to support the players, right?” he noted. “Like when the quarterback throws an interception, you can't get down on him. If he's the best quarterback, then we've got to support him. It’s no different than like what Kirkwood said when he made a mistake in qualifying, and everybody stood behind him.

“Yes, we’ve got to get better, and we’ve got to eliminate those mistakes, and we’ve got to turn that all into positives. But the good thing is, people are buying into the philosophy, and they're buying into the process. And that's what we’ve got to build. We’ve got to build a team around process.”